


Echoes of Autumn

by TheMulletWhisperer



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Origins
Genre: Angst, F/F, Gen, Heavy Angst, Kidnapping, No Smut, Non-Sexual Slavery, Slavery, Tevinter Imperium, probably
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-01
Updated: 2019-01-01
Packaged: 2019-10-02 03:49:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,601
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17257028
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheMulletWhisperer/pseuds/TheMulletWhisperer
Summary: Just as life begins to take an upturn for Ellana, a Tevinter Magister's machinations drag her down to the bottom of the barrel--further than she'd ever been before. Trapped with her only friend in a unique hell, unable to escape, she is faced with the prospect of never seeing the light of the sun again.





	Echoes of Autumn

**Author's Note:**

> I've stopped trying to justify why I'm writing new works.

The village had always been so ideal. Almost something out of a human storybook. It looked just as described in the pictures and paragraphs; cobblestones worn down to soft edges, dirt running through the cracks like blood through its veins and hardy plants sprouting between, sturdy houses built of dark planks with smoke pouring from the chimneys into the brilliant blue skies. The streets were busy with people on a daily routine, greeting one-another as friends in the markets and beneath the boughs of the tree that rooted itself in the center of the square. All was perfect, all was serene. 

That’s how someone from Denerim would describe the Alienage to an outsider.. Lies by omission, all of them. The cobblestones were smooth at the edges from wear but the surfaces were jagged and unforgiving. Most of the impoverished residents had grown irreparable scar tissue from the years of walking across them. The homes were ramshackle, haphazardly repaired by the few lucky enough to afford the materials. The planks were dark but the smoke usually signified an attempt to rid a house of the ever-present smell of sewage. Everyone knew each-other, but few remained outside for long in fear of being heckled by drunk humans. Even the tree, the center of our entire culture, was irreparably marred by slurs. ‘Knife ear’ from the humans and ‘Flat ear’ from any of our Dalish ‘bretheren’ who passed through. 

The Alienage was hell. Not a single elf in Denerim  _ didn’t  _ long to leave had they not a family to care for or friends to remain with. Others were simply too poor to afford passage out. I was a bit of all three. My brothers ran off to join a passing Dalish clan years past and my sister had been taken as a servant to a noble house somewhere near Redcliffe. That left me to care for my parents. For fifteen years they’d raised me and for five I’d repaid that favor by helping them in their age. Unlike the roaming clans, we didn’t have quite so long a lifespan. Our living conditions were awful and food was often scarce. During bad months some of the children and elderly would pass of starvation. Not that we could do anything about it. The most we’d ever receive from the humans would be two bits from someone pretending to care. And so, of course, I stole. I didn’t steal money, I didn’t steal valuables, I stole food, plain and simple. Most of it fed my parents, I ate what I could find.

Sometimes I ate bugs. 

I have a point, and that point is that you should never trust a human. They’ve never cared for us elves and they’ll never care. Kings and queens promise us the world to gain their political favor in progressive circles and then stonewall until their reign is over. They don’t even treat their servants with any more kindness than they would a stray raccoon. The worst—though—is slavery. Most of the ‘civilized’ world will claim that, officially, slavery is illegal. That doesn’t stop them, though. 

Humans can’t be trusted.

* * *

“Ellana!” She heard her name called from the alleyways on her way to her daily sojourn into the greater city. Curious, she turned to face the mystery caller, peering between the buildings with sharp eyes. Nothing. For a moment she thought she’d imagined the voice. Perhaps she really was going insane. As she turned to leave, however, it called again. “Over here!” 

That was definitely not a hallucination. She wheeled around and squeezed between the run-down pickets that once guarded the alley from intruders, seeking after the voice. Even as she stepped into the clearing behind the houses she found nobody, now profoundly confused and increasingly worried that she was about to be killed by some crazed soldier or the boy who’d harassed her the previous week. 

All her fears were simultaneously confirmed and relieved as she was tackled from above by a body she recognized—one that took a profound joy in messing with her. She should’ve known. Through the laughter above her, she turned over, staring up into the eyes of her best friend, Seni. They’d known one-another for only a few years but already they were thick as thieves. Literally. The two of them had devised an almost foolproof plan for slipping breads and meats away from the bakers and butchers in the cities, turning their friendship into one of necessity to a genuine one. 

Seni smiled down at Ellana, her legs straddling her waist and her arms crossed over her chest. “Be more careful, Ella! I could’ve been a Tevinter come to haul you away.” She laughed, looking up at the roof she’d jumped from. “You always gotta check the roofs, remember?” Seni looked back down at the elf she’d pinned, who seemed not to be listening to a word she was saying. 

Ellana’s vision lost its focus as Seni spoke and smiled and laughed. By Mythal she was beautiful. All three years they’d known each-other Ellana had been stricken, but it had only gotten worse after her twentieth birthday when she’d finally admitted it to herself. Now seemed like the perfect time—good as any could be. If only she could force the words out. “Go out with me.” She blurted, eyes instantly widening at the bluntness of it. Even Seni seemed surprised by the offer, her usual chipper demeanor fading into something more awkward. 

“What?” She nearly whispered, furrowing her brow and staring down at Ellana in confusion. A long silence passed between the two as she tried to regain the courage to repeat what she’d said. Eventually it mustered, but not after the moment had probably passed. Still, she pressed on. 

“Will you go out with me? Tonight? We can meet by the tree and I can bring drinks.” She cut herself off as she began to ramble again. More likely than not she’d just dug herself into the deepest and darkest hole she could find. Not that she’d mind being there right now.    


Once again the silence between them was palpable before Seni finally responded, blinking in bewilderment before cracking a smile. “I… okay. Tonight.” She nodded, almost seeming unsure of herself before that characteristic confidence rushed back to her posture and she sat upright, stepping off of her latest victim-turned-date and offering her hand.

Ellana took a deep breath and reciprocated the smile, trying to keep down the leap of joy that her soul was currently taking part in. She took Seni’s unbelievably soft hand and pulled herself up, holding onto it for a fraction of a second longer than she should’ve before letting go. “Okay. I’ll see you tonight.” She slipped past her friend quickly, forcing herself not to look back as she slipped back out of the alley and returned to her path to the city.

No food today, they had enough. Now was the time for dresses.

Hours passed and the sun had sunk below the parapets of the city, the rays of light streaming in through the windows dimming and eventually disappearing, leaving the only source of light in the house the scattered candles and dying fire in the hearth. While her parents were eating, Ellana was dressing as she had been for the past half hour, trying to make herself look her best with the tools she had on hand.

The dress she’d stolen was nothing special—rather plain, really. It was stitched of a cheap material and the hem stopped just above her ankles, but it was far nicer than any of the tattered wear that she owned. 

“Mum, dad, I’m going out! I’ll be back later!” She called into the kitchen, smoothing her hair back and tucking in whatever errant strands remained, setting down the cracked hand mirror and stepping out of the bedroom. 

“Don’t stay out too late!” Her mother called from behind the dividing wall. It was doubtful that they’d realize even if she did stay out;it wasn’t long until they would both be in bed, so chances were good nobody would notice. She wasn’t sure what would keep her all night though, aside from one thing. For a moment she paused, feeling a heat rise to her face before she shook it off. “Fantasy, Ella. Fantasy.” She sighed, pulling the door open and stepping outside into the cold streets of the Denerim Alienage. 

The Alienage was so different at night. More dead than in the day, and the silence gave way to the chatter just across the walls from them. Lively sounds of happy drunkards in taverns, mothers singing to their daughters, the Chant of Light performed by the sisters of the Chantry. That was more a fantasy than Ellana was having, something that the elves could never participate in and something they’d likely never see. 

Ellana looked up at the tree as she passed into the square, but her date was nowhere to be seen. Although she felt a bit of fear rising, she refused to panic just yet. It was just as likely that she was hiding in the tree waiting to ambush her again as it was that she’d bailed. Ellana raised her voice slightly, whispering harshly into the night air, “Seni, where are you?” 

No response.

She called again, a bit louder this time. “Seni?!”

Nothing.

As her heart began to sink she heard a sound behind her and once again it soared as she spun around to meet her date.

Instead, she found the business end of a baton against her temple and everything went black.

**Author's Note:**

> There probably won't be any smut in this story by the way. The slavery is very non-sexual unless you're into some really weird shit. If there is smut I'll let you know in the notes, though1


End file.
